Knockdown furniture connector



Jan. 10, 1961 J. A. BUS

KNOCKDOWN FURNITURE CONNECTOR Filed Sept. 6, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 VIIIIIIIIIIII'7' Ill 55 2a 27 ll 25 \2 L 11E (1&5 5 JOHANNES 785%; Bus

ATTORNEYS Jan. 10, 1961 J. A. BUS

KNOCKDOWN FURNITURE CONNECTOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 6, 1956 ttes atent KNGCKDOWN FURNITURE CONNECTOR .Fohannes Antonius Bus, Amsterdam, Netherlands, assignor to N.V. Utrechtsche Machinale Stoelen Meuhelfahriek U.M.S., Utrecht, Netherlands, a limitedliabiiity company of the Netherlands Filed Sept. 6, 1956, Ser. No. 608,237

(Iiairns priority, application Great Britain Feb. 1, 1956 3 Claims. (Cl. 312-257) This invention relates to an article of furniture comprising essentially fiat sections or panels which are secured to each other by detachable connecting members.

It is the object of this invention to provide an article of furniture which can be shipped in a knocked-down condition and then readily assembled at the point of use without the necessity for additional cabinet work.

A further object of this invention is to provide an article of furniture which can be increased or decreased in size by adding or removing sections of the article.

Another object of this invention is to provide an article of furniture which can be readily assembLd and disassembled, but which has no connecting elements protruding from either its inner or outer surfaces.

Other objects of this invention and its various advantages will become apparent as this description proceeds.

The article of furniture, in accordance with this invention, includes at least two flat sections or panels secured to each other by a detachable connecting assembly or bars. The panels have no members protruding from either the inner or the outer surfaces thereof which can be detected by the eye and present to the eye only fiat disks in the surfaces of the fiat or panel sections. The panel sections which are detachably connected together may be side or back walls, horizontal shelf like sections or other parts of a piece of furniture.

In a preferred embodiment of this invention, the fiat sections or panels of the article of furniture are made of wood and the fiat locking disks embedded therein are made of a non-corrosive, decorative metal, such as, for example, brass, stainless steel, aluminum or the like, which may be stained or painted to the finish of the furniture sections or panels to thereby render the locking disks substantially unnoticeable.

The connecting assembly by which t.e flat sections or panels of this article of furniture are detachably connected together comprise essentially a connecting bar carrying one or more groups of draw members. This connecting bar is made of a material which harmonizes with the remainder of the article of furniture and forms a visible part of the furniture assembly. In the case of a wooden article, this connecting bar will preferably be made of wood and finished on its exposed surface in a manner which harmonizes with the finish of the remainder of the article. The sides of the connecting'bar which engage the ends of the furniture sections or panels to be secured thereto, and the engaging furniture sections, are preferably provided with matching grooves, concavities or convexities so as to prevent twisting of the connecting furniture sections with reference to the connecting bars when the furniture assembly is connected together.

The connecting bar of this connecting assembly carries at least one group of draw members and may carry.

two or more groups spaced apart along its length, and

the connecting furniture sections carry the cooperating locking disks. The draw members are preferably round metal rod sections which have notched heads extending outwardly from the surface of the connecting bar in different directions to permit the connection of furniture panels to the connecting bar at right angles or any other desired angular relationship. The notched heads of the draw members normally extend at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the connecting bar. The notched heads of these draw members provide a bearing surface to carry the force directed toward the connecting bar and cooperate with the locking disks located in the furniture panels.

Having indicated the general nature of this invention, preferred embodiments thereof will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which like reference characters are used to refer to like parts, Wherever they may occur. In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic, perspective view of an article of furniture assembled in accordance with this invention,

Figure 2 is a broken, cross-sectional view taken along the section line 2-2 of Figure 1, showing the details of an embodiment of the connecting member in accordance with this invention,

Figure 3 is a broken, cross-section taken along the section line 3-3 of Figure 2,

Figure 4 is a side view of a draw member which forms a part of the connecting member illustrated by Figures 2 and 3,

Figure 5 is a side view of a second draw member which cooperates with the draw member of Figure 4 in forming the connecting member illustrated by Figures 2, 3 and 9,

Figure 6 is a top plan view of the arcuate wedge which forms the locking disk of the connected parts illustrated by Figures 2, 3 and 9,

Figure 7 is a side view of the locking disk illustrated by Figure 6,

Figure 8 is a cross-section taken along the section line 8-8 of Figure 7,

Figure 9 is a broken, cross-section showing three sections of an article of furniture detachably connected together by an alternative form of the connecting member in accordance with this invention, and

Figure 10 is a side view of an alternative draw member used in cooperation with the draw member illustrated by Figure 5 as a part of the connecting member illustrated by Figure 9.

Referring to Figure 1, it will be seen that the article of furniture in accordance with this invention may comprise a plurality of walls or panels 10 interconnected by the connecting elements or bars designated generally by the numeral 11. As indicated by the dotted outlines of this figure, the article of furniture may consist of more than one section.

Referring to Figures 2 and 3, it will be seen that each connecting member 11 comprises a bar or cornerpiece 12 and one or more groups of draw members, each of which consists of a draw member 13 and a cooperating draw member 14 carried in the bar 12 and preferably extending at right angles to each other. Referring to Figure 4, it will be seen that the draw member 13consists of a cylindrical body section 15 one end of which carries a smaller cylindrical neck-like section 16 which terminates in a head 17. A threaded hole 18 passes through the body section 15 near the end opposite the head 17.

Referring to Figure 5, it will be seen that the draw Patented Jan. 10, 1961v member 14 has a' cylindrical body section 19 one end of which has a smaller cylindrical neck-like section 20 which terminates in a head 21 having a screw driver slot therein. The opposite end of the body section 19 carries a smaller, externally screw threaded section 23, which is adapted to be screwed into the internally threaded hole 18 of the draw member 13.

Referring again to Figures 2 and 3, it will be seen that the bar 12 is provided with recesses 25: and 26 positioned at right angles to each other and intersecting near the center of the bar 12. The diameter of the recess 25 is larger than that of the recess 26. A singleended draw member 13 is positioned in the recess 25, while a single-ended draw member 14 is positioned in recess 26, with its threaded section 23 screwed into the internally threaded perforation 18 of the draw member 13. This threaded connection between the draw member 13 and 14 locks them in the bar 12.

Still referring to Figures 2 and 3, it will be seen that the membersltl, are each provided with a longitudinal, cylindrical perforation 27 which opens into the larger recess 28 which opens into one of the surfaces of 10. When the members 10, 10 are locked to the bar 12, the draw members 13 and 14 extend through the perforations 27, 27 with their respective necks 16 and and their heads 17 and 21 positioned within the recess 28.

Arcuate bayonet type lock members 30, 30 are positioned in the recesses 28, 28 and engage with the heads 17 and 21 of the draw members 13 and 14. This engagement firmly locks the'members 19, 10 against the bar 12 and produces a strong corner joint for the piece of furniture.

Referring to Figures 6, 7 and 8, as well as to Figures 2 and 3, it will be seen that the lock member 30 has an external cylindrical surface 31 and is provided with a slot 32 which opens into an internal chamber 33 which is generally cylindrical in shape but eccentric with respect to the external cylindrical surface 31. The slot 32-has a width slightly greater than the diameters of the necks 16 and 20 of the draw members 13 and 14, respectively, but smaller than the diameters of their heads, except at one end where it is enlarged to an opening 34 which will pass the heads 17 and 21 into the internal chamber 33. The opening 34 is adjacent the thinnest section of the metal sections forming the ends of the slot 32. The flat surface of the locking member 30 which is its outer surface when it is positioned in recess 28 is provided with a hexagonal opening 35 which is adapted to receive a tool by which the locking member can be rotated within the recess 28.

To assemble the joint illustrated by Figure 3, the draw members 13 and 14 are locked in position in recesses 26 of the bar 12. The locking member is positioned in the recess 28 with its opening 34 in alignment with the end of the perforation 27. The bar 12 is then positioned at the end of the section 10 with the end of one of the draw members 13 or 14 extending through the perforation 27 to position its head 17 or 21 within the chamber 33 of the locking member 30. The locking member 30 is then rotated in a counter-clockwise direction (Fig. 7) by the use of a suitable tool inserted in the hexagonal opening As this locking member is rotated, the neck 16 or 20 of the draw members 13 or 14, as the case may be, enters the slot 32 and the cam surfaces adjacent the slot 32 bear on the overhanging edge of the head 17 or 21. The portion of the cam surfaces adjacent the slot 32 hearing on the head 17 or 21 become progressively thicker as the locking member 30 is rotated due to the eccentric relationship between its internal chamber 33 and its external surface 31. This rotation of the'locking member is continued until the bar 12 is tightly held against the end of the section 101 A second" section 10 is then positioned on the adjacent surface of the bar 12 generally at right angles to the previously applied panel 10 with the draw member 13 or 14 extending through its perforation 27, and locked in position by a repetition of the procedure followed with the first section 10. In the resulting joint, the two sections 11!, 10 are positioned with their surfaces in planes at right angles to each other and each are firmly attached to the bar 12.

Figure 9 illustrates a joint between the edges of three sections 10, 10, 10. The bar 12 is provided with perioration 41 and recess 26. The double-ended draw member 42 is positioned within the perforation 41. Referring specifically to Figure 10, it will be seen that the double-ended draw member 42 has a cylindrical body section 43 which has an internally threaded, longitudinally centered screw threaded hole 13, which is adapted to receive in threaded engagement, the externally threaded section 23 of a single-ended draw member 14. Each outer end of the body section 43 has a neck 16 and a head 17. Referring again to Figure 9, it will e seen that a draw member 14 is positioned in the perforation 26 and locked therein by the engagement of its threaded end 23 within the opening 18 of the draw member 42.

Each of the sections 10 has a perforation 27 and n cylindrical recess 28 carrying a locking wedge 35. The locking wedges 30, 30, 30 are locked on the outer ends of the draw member 42 and the outer end of the draw member 14 in exactly the same manner as described hereinbefore with reference to Figure 3. In the resulting joint, the ends of the sections 10, 10 are firmly attached to the bar 12 with their surfaces in the same planes while the end of the third section 10 is firmly attached to the bar 12 with its surfaces in planes at right angles to the planes in which the first two sections 10, 10 are located. A fourth section 10 may be secured to the bar 12 in a similar manner.

From the foregoing, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that the articles of furniture in accordance with this invention may take a wide variety of forms from the standpoint of the overall shape and form, inasmuch as any desired number of panel sections may be detachably secured together by the connecting members disclosed hereinbefore. Further, it will be appreciated that cross-sectional shapes of the bar 12 forming a part of the connecting members used in these articles of furniture can be varied over a wide range to form a part of any desired artistic design of the articles of furniture.

In specifically exemplifying the connecting members which give these articles of furniture their usual features, preferred structures have been described in detail. However, numerous variations in the mechanical design of these connecting members will be obvious to those skilled in the art in view of these detailed descriptions of the various embodiments of the preferred structures given hereinbefore and it will be understood that the details described are solely for the purpose of fully exemplifying the improved structures.

I claim:

1. In an article of furniture, a connecting means between a bar and at least two panels, said means comprising at least two draw members secured together within the body of said bar, said draw members having an end section extending outwardly from said bar at right angles thereto and having a rearwardly facing shoulder facing said bar and positioned in a hole in said panel surrounded by the walls of said panel and extending into a recess in the side wall of said panel in communication with said hole the axis of said hole and said recess being at right angles to each other and a hollow cylindrical locking member positioned in said recess, said locking member having a cut-away portion in the cylindrical surface thereof in communication with the hollow interior thereof, said cut-away portion being of a size to receive the end of the draw member and said locking member further having a slot in the cylindrical surface and an internal arcuate wedge surface adapted to coop- 5 erate with the shoulder on said draw member whereby said bar and the edge faces of said panels are detachably and firmly locked.

2. The article of furniture described in claim 1 Where in a plurality of said connecting means are interposed between said bar and said panels.

3. The article of furniture described in claim 1 Wherein the locking surface of said bar and said edge face of said panels have matching concavities and convexities.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Gregg May 13, 1879 Johnson Oct. 13, 1953 Bohrner Feb. 8, 1955 French May 29, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS Switzerland June 16, 1948 

